Earth to Paris Summit Seeks Collective International Action Against Climate Change

Screenshot from a video prepared by Le Monde

As summers get hotter and winters get colder, new studies on the dangerous effects of global warming are continuously being released. Most recently, the scientific journal Nature Climate Change published a research study warning that the Middle East will be “unlivable” before the turn of the century due to high temperatures if no action is taken to slow down global warming.

A study from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change showed that greenhouse emissions have caused the average temperature around the globe to rise +0.85 grad. Average sea levels have risen by 19 cm over the course of the last 35 years, while the pH level of the oceans has dropped to -0.1.

In response to mounting worries, the “biggest conference on global warming of our time” will be held in Paris from November 30-December 10. The summit, which France will host, is the 21^st installment of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – dubbed “COP21” for short.

“The conference is crucial because the expected outcome is a new international agreement on climate change, applicable to all, to keep global warming below 2°C,” the summit’s website reads. According to IPCC, allowing a higher rate of global warming would lead to “serious consequences”.

The summit will include a number of events and active sessions, including the COP at Petit Palais and the UNESCO headquarters, various thematic breakfasts and a high-level reception and dinner to gather key figures and representatives. A set of masterclass sessions will also be hosted to inform reporters and bloggers about issues related to climate change and the “substance of COP negotiations”.

The UN will come together with the Earth to Paris coalition, which brings together technology companies, media organizations and more and aims to “raise the profile, volume and level of discussion and action around COP21.”

The key to the convention is to bring “experts, advocates, CEOs and other leaders in Paris [to] discuss creative and impactful solutions to climate change, while participants around the world take part through multi-language live-streamed video and real-time interactions.”

Social media platforms have been abuzz as the conference draws nearer, with users circulating posts with the hashtag #EarthToParis and celebrities like actor Jack Black appearing in campaign videos.

However, the most important actor of all is the global society – each and every one of us. That’s why the Earth to Paris coalition has led a “digital activation, social media conversation with the hashtag #EarthToParis, [to]rally global voices on climate change.